My child struggles to understand jokes, sarcasm, and others' expressions and feelings.

Jokes, sarcasm, and reading expressions are especially hard for children who take words literally, and it's not something to blame them for. Start by naming feelings together using photos or illustrations of faces—"happy, troubled, angry"—and practice with scenes in picture books or cartoons ("how do they feel now?"). Explain jokes and idioms each time (for example, that "give me a hand" means "please help"). For people who may not get sarcasm, sharing with those around them that "a straightforward way of speaking gets through best" reduces misunderstandings.